My Honest Thoughts on Safety After 2 Years in Medellin, Colombia
Summary
TLDRThis video addresses common misconceptions about safety in Medellín, Colombia, based on the speaker's two-year experience. It emphasizes the importance of personal awareness and avoiding 'victim behavior' to prevent crime. The speaker shares three real-life cautionary tales to illustrate safety pitfalls, such as flaunting valuables, venturing into unfamiliar areas alone, and visiting popular spots during low traffic hours. The summary concludes with reassuring statistics, highlighting the rarity of incidents among international tourists.
Takeaways
- 😀 The speaker has been living in Colombia for two years without major safety issues, emphasizing that personal experience and awareness are key to navigating safety concerns.
- 🏞 The speaker suggests that looking less like a tourist can help avoid unwanted attention, but also stresses that appearance alone is not a guarantee of safety.
- 🛡 There is a prevalent 'victim blaming' culture in Colombia, where individuals are often held responsible for their own safety, highlighting the importance of self-protection.
- 🌍 The speaker has traveled to many countries and lived in Central America, which has given them insight into safety concerns and how to be vigilant.
- 🤔 Criminals in Colombia are strategic, targeting those who appear to have the most to gain from, reinforcing the idea that not appearing as an easy target is crucial.
- 🚫 The speaker warns against three common behaviors that lead to trouble: working with valuables in public, visiting unknown areas alone, and going to safe places during low-light or quiet times.
- 💡 Awareness and education on local dangers are the speaker's main recommendations for staying safe, rather than relying on external help.
- 📉 Despite the sensationalism around safety in Colombia, the actual number of foreigner fatalities is very low compared to the number of tourists, indicating that most safety issues can be avoided with proper caution.
- 🏥 The speaker recounts tragic stories to illustrate the consequences of ignoring safety advice, such as going to a popular hike during unsafe hours.
- 📚 Researching the places you plan to visit and heeding local advice are emphasized as essential steps in ensuring personal safety.
- 🌟 The speaker concludes by encouraging viewers to be educated and cautious, assuring that with the right approach, the likelihood of encountering safety issues is minimal.
Q & A
What is the main issue the speaker addresses in the video?
-The main issue the speaker addresses is the perception of safety in Colombia, particularly in Medellín, and how it is often sensationalized, while sharing personal experiences and advice on how to stay safe.
How long has the speaker been living in Colombia?
-The speaker has been living in Colombia for two years.
What is the speaker's background that might contribute to their safety experience in Colombia?
-The speaker has traveled to about 40 countries and previously lived in Central America for two years, giving them experience in safety awareness and understanding of potential risks.
What is the first realization the speaker shares about safety in Colombia?
-The speaker's first realization is that their appearance helps them avoid safety issues, as they do not look like a typical tourist, which can make them less of a target for criminals.
What is the 'No papaya' culture the speaker refers to in Colombia?
-The 'No papaya' culture refers to the victim-blaming attitude where people are advised not to be easy targets for crime, implying that individuals are responsible for their own safety.
What is the speaker's stance on the responsibility of personal safety?
-The speaker believes that the responsibility for personal safety lies with the individual, emphasizing the importance of being aware of one's surroundings and not relying on external factors for protection.
What are the three real-life examples the speaker gives to illustrate unsafe behaviors?
-The three examples are: 1) Using a laptop openly in a busy, accessible location, making one an easy target for theft. 2) Visiting an unsafe area without local knowledge or guidance. 3) Going to a usually safe place during low-light or quiet hours when there are fewer people around.
Why did the speaker mention the Sweet Georgia Cafe incident?
-The speaker mentioned the Sweet Georgia Cafe incident to illustrate the danger of using electronic devices openly in a place with easy access for criminals, leading to a robbery where everyone lost their belongings.
What is the significance of the story about the tourist who went to the Bello neighborhood?
-The story about the tourist who went to the Bello neighborhood highlights the importance of heeding local advice and not venturing into dangerous areas without proper knowledge or company, as it led to the tourist being stabbed and robbed.
What is the key takeaway from the story of the tourist who was attacked during a hike for sunrise?
-The key takeaway from the story is the importance of not going to even seemingly safe places during times when they are not well-trafficked or well-lit, as it can lead to dangerous situations, as it did for the tourist who was fatally attacked.
How does the speaker summarize the safety situation for tourists in Medellín based on the number of incidents?
-The speaker summarizes that the safety situation for tourists in Medellín is generally good, as evidenced by the low number of incidents relative to the number of tourists, but emphasizes the importance of personal responsibility and awareness to avoid becoming a victim.
Outlines
🌟 Personal Experience on Safety in Colombia
The speaker shares their insights on safety in Colombia, particularly in Medellín, after living there for two years. They address the common sensationalism around safety issues and emphasize their personal lack of negative experiences, attributing this to their travel experience and awareness. The speaker also mentions the importance of not appearing as a tourist to avoid unwanted attention and gives examples of how their appearance contrasts with that of their friends, leading to different experiences in terms of harassment.
🛡️ Avoiding Victim Blaming and Being Vigilant
The speaker discusses the prevalent victim-blaming culture in Colombia, especially in Medellín, and the local phrase 'No papaya,' which means not to be an easy target. They highlight the importance of personal responsibility for one's safety, rather than relying on external protection. The speaker also shares observations on how criminals select their targets based on the potential return on investment and the risks involved, stressing the need to avoid displaying wealth or being inattentive to one's surroundings.
🚫 Three Real-Life Stories of Safety Missteps
The speaker recounts three real-life stories to illustrate common safety mistakes made by tourists in Colombia. The first story involves a robbery at a cafe due to tourists working with laptops in a vulnerable outdoor location. The second story tells of a tourist who ignored local advice and ventured into a dangerous neighborhood, resulting in a stabbing and robbery. The third story is a cautionary tale about the dangers of visiting popular but risky places during low-light hours or when they are not busy, as exemplified by a tragic incident involving a tourist who was attacked and killed while hiking for a sunrise view.
📈 Statistical Perspective on Safety and Final Thoughts
To provide context and alleviate potential fears, the speaker presents statistics showing that the number of foreigner fatalities in Medellín is extremely low compared to the total number of international tourists. They argue that most incidents involve drugging and robbery, often resulting from tourists taking unnecessary risks. The speaker concludes by encouraging viewers to educate themselves about the local culture and potential dangers, emphasizing that being informed and cautious will significantly reduce the likelihood of encountering safety issues.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Safety
💡Victim Blaming
💡Awareness
💡Criminals
💡Tourist
💡No Papaya
💡Digital Nomads
💡Eduction
💡Risk-Taking
💡Statistical Perspective
💡Cultural Sensitivity
Highlights
The speaker addresses common safety concerns for travelers in Colombia, particularly in Medellín, aiming to provide an honest perspective based on personal experience.
Having lived in Colombia for two years without major safety issues, the speaker attributes their experience to not appearing as a typical tourist.
The speaker's background of traveling to 40 countries and living in Central America has equipped them with awareness for safety concerns.
The realization that looking less like a tourist can significantly reduce harassment and unwanted attention in Medellín.
The existence of a victim-blaming culture in Colombia, with a local phrase 'No papaya' emphasizing not being an easy target.
The importance of personal responsibility for safety and being aware of one's surroundings to avoid becoming a victim of crime.
Criminals in Colombia are strategic, targeting individuals who appear to have the most valuable possessions on display.
The speaker's observation that most safety issues could be avoided with proper awareness and education about local dangers.
Three real-life examples are given to illustrate common mistakes leading to safety incidents in Colombia.
Story of a robbery at a cafe due to patrons being too visible and vulnerable while working outside.
The danger of visiting unfamiliar places without local guidance, as illustrated by a tourist getting stabbed and robbed.
The risks of visiting even seemingly safe places during low-light or quiet times, such as hiking for sunrise.
A tragic story of a tourist attacked and killed while hiking alone for sunrise, emphasizing the importance of timing and company.
Despite the risks, Medellín saw a low number of incidents among international tourists, suggesting that being informed and cautious can significantly reduce danger.
The speaker encourages viewers to educate themselves about the local culture and potential dangers before traveling.
The video concludes with a reminder that most safety issues are avoidable with proper preparation and awareness.
Transcripts
good day welcome back today I'm going to
be addressing a big issue for a lot of
people that are coming to Colombia and
especially medine there's a lot of
videos out there on safety related
things and sensationalizing safety fear
gets clicks fear gets views I've been
here for 2 years now so I just want to
make this video to explain my honest
thoughts on safety from the good to the
bad to what's truth to what's lies so
you can really have a proper opinion
from someone who's lived here and seen
all the stories and you know been part
of it I personally in the two years that
I've been here luckily haven't had any
issues with safety but that being said
I'm also not a fresh traveler so it's
not like I'm from Australia I'd only
ever visited barley and then I came
straight to medine as my first
destination no I have been to about 40
countries around the world and before I
came to Colombia I actually lived in
Central America so Mexico Nicaragua
Costa Rica uh Guatemala for about two
years in total so I already knew about
the safety concerns and how to be aware
and what to look out for maybe that's
also a reason why I haven't really had
any safety problems so first I'm going
to talk about realizations what I
realized after two years of being here
and on the topic of safety and at the
end I'm going to give you three real
life examples of things that you should
never ever do I see people doing this
over and over and over and these three
things always lead to trouble I'm going
to tell you three real life stories of
when this happened and also how to avoid
them to make sure that this doesn't
happen to you as well first realization
is that the way that I look really
really helps me avoid a lot of the
safety issues because I don't look like
a tourist they might think hey this
guy's obviously not Colombian but he
could be some other type of Latino they
don't see me immediately and think
dollar sign when I first got to menene I
came with two of my mates from Seattle
Washington 6'4 and 6'2 um white guys
blue eyes um well-built guys so they
stick out anywhere right so whenever I
was walking with them they would get
hassled harassed everyone would be like
hey buy this buy this hey where are you
from blah blah blah and then I noticed
um when I walk by myself no one asked me
anything if you walk along kajas which
is like one of the most busiest uh
streets here in the tourist area of el
po there's a lot of people begging and
trying to sell things and whatever uh
none of those people ever bother me can
count on one hand and remove
two fingers for the amount of times that
people have actually hassled me to buy
something or they've asked me where I'm
from or whatever they more or less just
leave me alone and I think that's really
because how I look if you are white if
you look evidently like a foreigner you
might experience some more troubles with
people harassing you than if you look
like me or if you look Latino but don't
worry I still have many friends here who
who are you know obviously fair skinned
they look like complete Gringos and they
haven't had any safety issues as well
and the main reason for that is because
they're aware of the the dangers and
that's the next thing I'm going to talk
about the second realization that I have
here is that there's a big big big
victim blaming culture here in Colombia
and especially here in medin they have a
phrase called No papaya and what that
basically means is uh don't be an easy
target right don't give people a reason
to do crime on you I guess it's a poorly
spoken sentence but you know what I mean
don't be stupid basically so I've seen
so many times someone gets robbed and
they're like oh what was he wearing was
he wearing gold chains was he showing
jewelry was he wearing an Apple Watch
there's a lot of victim blaming that
goes on here and I think that stems from
the fact that the country was dangerous
for so long you know going back to the
'90s and Pablo Escobar and all those
kind of things that it almost became a
cultural thing that you have to protect
yourself at the end of the day if
anything happens to you the only person
you can blame is yourself I almost liken
it to this very harsh um example but it
was something going around in the 90s
before everyone realized this was a
stupid argument um do you remember when
it was like oh this woman got raped and
then in court uh they would ask what was
she wearing it was that kind of victim
blaming culture that um you saw in those
kind of cases that's still a thing here
what was he wearing what was he doing
what did he do to put himself in this
situation to become a victim of crime
there's no way around that that's just
how it is here so my honest realization
is that the only person that can protect
you is you you need to be aware of what
the dangers are and that's what I'm
going to cover a bit later in this video
but don't expect the police to come
running and save you don't expect uh you
know any type of repercussion or
ramifications if you become a victim of
crime at that point it's too late so
it's really really important to be aware
and to be uh Vigilant to stop this from
happening to you the next thing that I
notice is that criminals are just going
around and Willy nearly robbing
everybody I mean at the end of the day
it's a business for them right and
they're looking for maximum Roi return
on investment so they're investing their
time and furthermore they're investing a
lot of risk so every time they rob
someone that's a risk they might get
caught right so they're not just going
and trying to rob every tourist what
they do is they normally ride around on
bikes there's one guy riding the bike
and the guy in the back who's kind of
like the lookout and what he will do is
he'll look around and see like oh what's
this guy wearing what's that guy doing
does he have Apple watch is he wearing
gold chain is he wearing Gucci head to
toe and they'll kind of see from you
know first impressions who is going to
net them the biggest gain so that's why
it's so important not to be an easy
target don't show off that you have a
lot of things to um give away don't show
off that you have a lot of money don't
be randomly walking around unaware of
your surroundings talking on the phone
like flailing it around trust me people
are watching you they're going to be
aware that okay that's an easy target
let's take advantage of of it so the
next realization that I had is that the
sooner you realize that safety is an
onus on you the more likelihood you have
of staying safe right don't come here
and um you know complain about oh safety
and this happened and that happened when
uh it was ultimately as I said victim
blaming ultimately it's going to be your
fault okay and that being said what I've
seen from two years here from Facebook
forums to real life stories to videos on
YouTube to everything is that
99% of safety issues and people who are
victims of crime they could have avoided
these crimes very easily if they were
aware and if they were educated right
and I don't mean educated like going to
Harvard I mean educated on the dangers
of Colombia if you're watching this
video you've already taken the first
step and I don't think really um you're
going to have many issues with safety
because the first step is actually doing
some study on the places you're going to
what do I need to look out for is this
place safe what should I do what
shouldn't I do if you're watching this
video that's already you know Miles
Ahead than some other people who just
randomly go and do whatever they feel
like it and then complain later that
they got drugged or they got robbed or
whatever so since you're watching this
video Let's accept that 99% of things
can be avoided um obviously there's 1%
of where you're just in the wrong place
at the wrong time that's probably the
same thing as most places in the world
you're bad luck that day something might
happen to you wherever you are but 99%
of things I truly believe can be avoided
and I'm going to give you three stories
right now which really highlight that
okay so let's start with Story number
one there's a lot of digital Nomads that
come here right I think most of people
who come to Colombia uh they work online
so they'll go to a cafe or a co-work get
their laptop out have a coffee and
that'll be their work day that's fine
and many people do that what's not fine
is doing it in a place that's Road
facing where there's easy access for
entry and exit why you're asking right
now well imagine this you're on a busy
Main Street and remember I told you that
these guys come on bikes and you're oh
got going to do a bit of work today take
my laptop out you sit it on the patio uh
you're enjoying the the beautiful
sunshine you're taking a call zoom and
then boom some guys's right next to you
with a gun this actually happened right
I believe it was in early 2002 there's a
cafe called Sweet Georgia Cafe in leles
and they have a big patio right next to
you know an easy access Street and there
was a lot of people that day working
from their laptop a couple of guys came
on their bikes one guy got off and he
said hey everybody give me all your
laptops give me all your stuff that day
everybody lost their stuff just because
they made the mistake of believing hey
this is California this is you know San
Diego I can be outside on the patio and
uh working and showing the whole world
that I have this laptop and all this
expensive gear so that's the first thing
that you never never never should do do
not be outside showing the whole world
that you have stuff and this goes back
to what I said don't be an easy target
okay so that's a true story now let's
get to number two number two is this is
very common sense but as the old saying
goes common sense is sometimes not so
common and that is don't go to places
you don't know by yourself some of you
looking at me now like okay what kind of
[ __ ] advice is this who in their
right mind would ever go to medine and
just go to a random Place well I'm about
to tell you my uh massuse physio SLG
good M of mine cados he was telling me
Story one day he said one of his clients
client was from the US I believe
somewhere client goes hey cardos what do
you know about this Bellow place what
the f Bellow and he's like yeah you know
this place to the north of medene b l
K's like oh okay be beel okay if you
guys don't know it's this is kind of a
hot area kind of a dangerous place right
I've had many people who have told me
never go there unless you go with a
local I even have friends who live in
the nice part of this um neighborhood
beour and they said they only stick to
their own pocket and they never leave
they've never even visited the other
parts of this town because it's heavy
with uh gang presence and uh it's just
not a safe place for most people so back
to my story calos his client goes yeah
be yeah that's the one I've heard heard
about it it's pretty cool like uh I can
go there I can visit what's going on and
kados goes hey let me give you one piece
of advice unless you know someone who
lives there who can show you around and
make sure you're okay never ever go
there me being a Colombian even I don't
go there so you
I don't really see any point I don't see
what you're going to gain from going
there so I would say avoid it but if you
really want to go make sure you know
someone who has who lives there grown up
there who knows the people of that area
so KLOS thinks nothing about it he
finishes his session with this guy goes
home the next day he gets a uh photo
this guy his client sitting in the
hospital bed and he's like oh [ __ ] kados
I shouldn't have gone there and kados
like what happened the client says yeah
so I decided to go with a couple of my
mates also from the US just to go check
it out and uh we actually got stabbed
and robbed they stole all our stuff and
they stabbed us and uh now that's why
I'm in hospital as I said common sense
sometimes not so common don't make
stupid mistakes like this this is not
victim blaming this is just stupidity
straight up stupidity who the hell would
do this in a random country anywhere in
the world let alone somewhere in meding
Colombia where obviously it's been known
that there's dangerous places there's
gangs there's still drugs why this [ __ ]
doesn't make any sense to me but I guess
that's my lesson in this this is never
ever go anywhere that you don't know is
safe always research the areas before
you go and listen to the locals like if
this guy just listened to Carlos instead
of being a hero about it he wouldn't
have had any issues instead he ended up
uh in a hospital bed so don't let that
happen to you as well now let's move to
number three on the things that you
never ever ever should do ever in Median
Columbia and probably nowhere else in
the world as well this is also one of
the Common Sense things never go to even
safe place
when it's low light or it's a very quiet
time and there's no one else there so
there's some places in the city where at
sometimes are completely safe for
example El Centro El Centro is downtown
if any of you guys don't know about that
during the day completely safe you can
walk around I've been a few times to
restaurants shopping whatever it's cool
but at nighttime I know even some locals
that never go there because the
nighttime it completely changes okay but
maybe that might be an obvious place but
one place that's not so obvious is maybe
the most popular hike in all of medine
first crues or the hill of the three
crosses it's a great hike my girlfriend
actually this is her favorite place in
the whole of the city her favorite thing
to do is to go to this place on a
Saturday um or a Sunday and hike up so
it's very safe but a lot of the time I
see um foreigners trying to go up there
for sunset or sunrise or something and
that is a big no no let me tell you why
by explaining a story that happened less
than 6 months ago very sad and tragic
story actually there was a guy a tourist
who was here and he wanted to go up this
hike and he wanted to see Sunrise
because obviously once you get up this
hill there's a great view so I'm sure
that Sunrise would look really really
nice from there he went up at sunrise I
think he went up like maybe 500 a.m.
maybe 4 a.m. very early right if you
guys don't know this thes cruus area the
hike backs on to one of the most
dangerous neighborhoods in the city so
uh often people are getting robbed there
people are getting attacked there and
unfortunately at this point that's what
happened to this guy as well a group of
guys actually attacked him they tried to
Rob his stuff assaulted him and actually
threw him off the top of the hill into a
Ravine and uh it was there that uh he
suffered very bad injuries he was taken
to hospital where unfortunately he
passed away as sad as that is that's one
thing that I see happening a lot not as
far as as dying or people losing their
lives but a lot of time people um fall
victims of this because they just just
don't check yes I know the psych is good
but should I be going up there alone
when it's very dark I see still see this
being talked about a lot in the hiking
group there's actually a hiking group of
people that go to that spot and it's
always uh foreigners asking like hey
does anyone go up at like 8 p.m. anyone
want to go up at like 400 a.m. let's
catch the sunrise and then obviously
it's Colombians responding with like hey
don't do that that's very stupid and
very uh dangerous you should go only
when it's highly trafficked highly busy
and and there's good light you know so
that's a third one always do your
research because places that can be safe
at some times are very dangerous at
other points after hearing these stories
you might be a little bit worried you
might be a little bit scared but I'm
just telling you this so that you're
educated so nothing happens to you but
to put all this in context right in
20122 medine Saw
1.4 million International tourists okay
in that same period 25 foreigners lost
their lives in medene so if you do those
numbers 25 out of 1.4 million it's a
very very low figure and I would even go
a step further by saying that I
guarantee you probably 95% of those 25
were drugged and robbed cases and a lot
of these drugged and robbed cases that I
see as well is guys just taking
unnecessary risks they know that people
get drugged and robbed but I'm not sure
if they like the exhilaration of like
hey I might sleep with a girl or I might
die maybe they do it for the um the
adrenaline I'm not sure but uh
risk-taking and lack of education and
Desperation is really going to end up in
a bad way here but yeah that being said
you watching this video probably going
to be part of the you know
99.995 that nothing ever happens to you
in the city because you've taken the
first step you understand that hey I'm
going to a new place I need to
understand what happens there the
culture of that place the um potential
dangers so well done on that and uh
Happy travels
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